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Re: Kagin's Column- On Self-Righteousness

Hi everyone! I found this article interesting- maybe you will too. Have fun, Kaye KAGIN S COLUMN ON SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS self-righteous: confident of one s own

Message 1 of 3
, Apr 4, 2006

Hi everyone!

I found this article interesting- maybe you will too.

Have fun,

Kaye

KAGIN'S COLUMN
ON SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS

self-righteous: confident of one's own righteousness, esp. when smugly
moralistic and intolerant of the opinions and behavior of others.
Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary

Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she
wouldn't. She said it was a mean practice and wasn't clean, and I must
try not to do it anymore....And she took snuff too; of course that was
all right, because she done it herself.
Huckleberry Finn

The self-righteous are everywhere, trying to control our lives. With
the zeal of reformed nymphomaniacs peddling AmWay, they freely vend
their negative judgements on the behavior and opinions of others.
Unable or unwilling to control themselves and their unhappy lives of
frustration, insecurity, and despair, these petty dictators seek
solace in desperately attempting to control others. For they are
right. Those who disagree with their toxic tyranny are clearly and
obviously wrong, if not evil. And they do attract followers, persons
easily led, seeking certainty, and willing to praise, to flatter, and
to sing unto them, How great thou art. Self-righteous leaders reward
fidelity and elevate select obedient disciples, especially worshipful
ones who are confused but shamelessly self-righteous, to CULT
(Counseled Until Learned Truth) status.

The existence of such personalities is not new. Jesus is reported to
have said, "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's
eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" There are
similar references, for self-righteousness is justly and frequently
condemned in the bible, a work that, for all its many and obvious
faults, is not without certain merit. Indeed, we recommend you read
it. The book is much better than the movie.

Self-righteousness and hypocrisy may be joined, as in the widow's
views on tobacco reported by Huck. But they are quite different
concepts. Hypocrites, like the widow, do themselves that which they so
freely condemn in others. Most hypocrites are self-righteous, but
self-righteous persons are not necessarily hypocrites and may in fact
practice what they preach. A priest who rapes little boys, and
preaches against homosexuality and violence, is clearly both, while a
practicing virgin, who moralistically urges this unhappy fate on
others, is not. It's all in how you study it. Many have rejected
religion largely because it is home to lots of goodie-two-shoes type
persons of self-righteous or hypocritical persuasion. Sometimes, in
their attempt to live justly in an unjust world, the disillusioned
seek solace from religion in the perceived rationality of secular
humanism. And guess what?

This may come as a shock to some secular humanist readers, but the
self-righteous are also to be found among the ranks of the supposedly
rational, among those who look for meaning apart from the
supernatural, among those who decry the artificial goodness of the
godly. Bummer, ain't it? Thus, instead of holier-than-thou, we have
those who feel rationaler-than-thou, or skepticaler-than-thou, and who
demean, abjure, reject, and avoid those they feel don't quite measure
up to their standards. Such are no less self-righteous than the widow.

Whether religious or secular, the self-righteous and the con-artist
are sisters under the skin. Both become outraged if they don't get
their way. The slightest reasoned refusal to consent to manipulation
or control is punished. The uncooperative mark may witness a
presumably well meaning, but terminally self-righteous, friend go into
an inexplicable rage, answering disobedience with irrational and
unpleasant emotions, until the victim seems, as best worded by
Shakespeare, "beyond reason hated." To further complicate matters, the
person deluded by self-righteousness cannot understand when others are
disinclined to share their hostility and fail to concede the justness
of their attitudes and actions. The world as one conspires.

The self-righteous are troubled by democracy. Why debate or vote on
any matter of behavior or morality when truth is available by decree,
and when correct answers may be so readily had from those who know the
answers beyond any need for question or discussion? To challenge such
persons is, in their view, malum in se--in the vernacular,
reprehensible, wicked, and wrong in itself--denoting a defect of
character revealed in the very act of rebellion against ultimate
authority. Thereafter, every action or motive of the errant sinner
will be understood and punished as an indisputably vile thing--another
example of evil attacking good. The psychological mechanism of
projection, and the transparent narcissism of the self-righteous, is
beyond the scope of this digression. The analogies to theology are
scary. If afflicted leaders possess small power, they are merely
annoying, comical, or pathetic. If they hold real power over nations
or ideologies, the graveyards of history harbour their heritage.

The sad part is that they don't have to be like this. The
self-righteous prigs can get over it, or get therapy for it. They
don't have to expose themselves to the misery. Misery is optional, for
predator as well as prey, even if one thinks they have no free will.
Rational beings don't have to live with sustained rage, or with the
chronic paranoia of waiting for some other imaginary shoe to drop.
Those who live to control others could, using the power of reason they
mock, come to realize that compromise and resolution of disagreements
can be something more than capitulation or appeasement, and that, in
some things at least, they just might be--as impossible as it
seems--wrong. One is entitled to be smug, arrogant, and self-righteous
only if one has figured out how not to die. The outcast may well be
the better person. That's what the bible story of the good Samaritan
is all about.

If we can't avoid the self satisfied--the better option--we can laugh
at them. A healthy person loves to see the pompous taken down a peg or
two, and delights in mocking their phony goodness and proper ways.
This is why the common folk laugh when a stuffed shirt slips on a
banana skin. But what about self-righteous secular humanists who, in
hardening their hearts and softening their minds, do real harm to
those who actually favor free inquiry? Maybe we should create a
Secular Humanist Hall of Shame. Here could be enrolled and
acknowledged those whose actions have earned them the herein proposed
SHAME (Secular Humanist Arrogantly Making Enemies) Award.

As adolescent fantasies are best left to adolescents, so childish
needs to have one's own way are best left to children, who will
hopefully outgrow them. Adults should, to borrow again from the bible,
"put away childish things." It would be sad to die without growing up.

For everything there is a season,
For every act there is a reason;
As a garden reflects its seeds,
Deeds of life tell that life's needs.

Hi, Kaye! Thanks for posting this article. I am not surprised that Kagin used Twain s Huckleberry Finn as an example of hypocritical behavior-- Twain was a

Message 2 of 3
, Apr 4, 2006

Hi, Kaye!

Thanks for posting this article. I am not surprised that Kagin used
Twain's Huckleberry Finn as an example of hypocritical behavior--
Twain was a master of pointing that out in his talks and writings.
Charles Dickens also was a master of getting the same point across--
especially in the writings of "The Pickwick Papers." I was watching
a program recently on a form of laughing yoga in India. The laughing
was all very infectious, with the point of the exercise showing that
laughter is good for the Soul. So, getting caught up and realizing
our own hypocritical behavior/thinking, as well as those of others,
might be a good platform for us to see the humor of our human
frailities and lead us to exercise like a laughing yoga, which
really is more fun than displaying and/or experiencing some of our
other emotions!

> moralistic and intolerant of the opinions and behavior of others.
> Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary
>
> Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But

she

> wouldn't. She said it was a mean practice and wasn't clean, and I

must

> try not to do it anymore....And she took snuff too; of course that

was

> all right, because she done it herself.
> Huckleberry Finn
>
> The self-righteous are everywhere, trying to control our lives.

With

> the zeal of reformed nymphomaniacs peddling AmWay, they freely vend
> their negative judgements on the behavior and opinions of others.
> Unable or unwilling to control themselves and their unhappy lives

of

> frustration, insecurity, and despair, these petty dictators seek
> solace in desperately attempting to control others. For they are
> right. Those who disagree with their toxic tyranny are clearly and
> obviously wrong, if not evil. And they do attract followers,

persons

> easily led, seeking certainty, and willing to praise, to flatter,

and

> to sing unto them, How great thou art. Self-righteous leaders

reward

> fidelity and elevate select obedient disciples, especially

worshipful

> ones who are confused but shamelessly self-righteous, to CULT
> (Counseled Until Learned Truth) status.
>
> The existence of such personalities is not new. Jesus is reported

to

> have said, "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy

brother's

> eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" There

are

> similar references, for self-righteousness is justly and frequently
> condemned in the bible, a work that, for all its many and obvious
> faults, is not without certain merit. Indeed, we recommend you read
> it. The book is much better than the movie.
>
> Self-righteousness and hypocrisy may be joined, as in the widow's
> views on tobacco reported by Huck. But they are quite different
> concepts. Hypocrites, like the widow, do themselves that which

they so

> freely condemn in others. Most hypocrites are self-righteous, but
> self-righteous persons are not necessarily hypocrites and may in

fact

> practice what they preach. A priest who rapes little boys, and
> preaches against homosexuality and violence, is clearly both,

while a

> practicing virgin, who moralistically urges this unhappy fate on
> others, is not. It's all in how you study it. Many have rejected
> religion largely because it is home to lots of goodie-two-shoes

type

> persons of self-righteous or hypocritical persuasion. Sometimes, in
> their attempt to live justly in an unjust world, the disillusioned
> seek solace from religion in the perceived rationality of secular
> humanism. And guess what?
>
> This may come as a shock to some secular humanist readers, but the
> self-righteous are also to be found among the ranks of the

supposedly

> rational, among those who look for meaning apart from the
> supernatural, among those who decry the artificial goodness of the
> godly. Bummer, ain't it? Thus, instead of holier-than-thou, we have
> those who feel rationaler-than-thou, or skepticaler-than-thou, and

who

> demean, abjure, reject, and avoid those they feel don't quite

measure

> up to their standards. Such are no less self-righteous than the

widow.

>
> Whether religious or secular, the self-righteous and the con-artist
> are sisters under the skin. Both become outraged if they don't get
> their way. The slightest reasoned refusal to consent to

manipulation

> or control is punished. The uncooperative mark may witness a
> presumably well meaning, but terminally self-righteous, friend go

into

> an inexplicable rage, answering disobedience with irrational and
> unpleasant emotions, until the victim seems, as best worded by
> Shakespeare, "beyond reason hated." To further complicate matters,

the

> person deluded by self-righteousness cannot understand when others

are

> disinclined to share their hostility and fail to concede the

justness

> of their attitudes and actions. The world as one conspires.
>
> The self-righteous are troubled by democracy. Why debate or vote on
> any matter of behavior or morality when truth is available by

decree,

> and when correct answers may be so readily had from those who know

the

> answers beyond any need for question or discussion? To challenge

such

> persons is, in their view, malum in se--in the vernacular,
> reprehensible, wicked, and wrong in itself--denoting a defect of
> character revealed in the very act of rebellion against ultimate
> authority. Thereafter, every action or motive of the errant sinner
> will be understood and punished as an indisputably vile thing--

another

> example of evil attacking good. The psychological mechanism of
> projection, and the transparent narcissism of the self-righteous,

is

> beyond the scope of this digression. The analogies to theology are
> scary. If afflicted leaders possess small power, they are merely
> annoying, comical, or pathetic. If they hold real power over

nations

> or ideologies, the graveyards of history harbour their heritage.
>
> The sad part is that they don't have to be like this. The
> self-righteous prigs can get over it, or get therapy for it. They
> don't have to expose themselves to the misery. Misery is optional,

for

> predator as well as prey, even if one thinks they have no free

will.

> Rational beings don't have to live with sustained rage, or with the
> chronic paranoia of waiting for some other imaginary shoe to drop.
> Those who live to control others could, using the power of reason

they

> mock, come to realize that compromise and resolution of

disagreements

> can be something more than capitulation or appeasement, and that,

in

> some things at least, they just might be--as impossible as it
> seems--wrong. One is entitled to be smug, arrogant, and self-

righteous

> only if one has figured out how not to die. The outcast may well be
> the better person. That's what the bible story of the good

Samaritan

> is all about.
>
> If we can't avoid the self satisfied--the better option--we can

laugh

> at them. A healthy person loves to see the pompous taken down a

peg or

> two, and delights in mocking their phony goodness and proper ways.
> This is why the common folk laugh when a stuffed shirt slips on a
> banana skin. But what about self-righteous secular humanists who,

in

> hardening their hearts and softening their minds, do real harm to
> those who actually favor free inquiry? Maybe we should create a
> Secular Humanist Hall of Shame. Here could be enrolled and
> acknowledged those whose actions have earned them the herein

proposed

> SHAME (Secular Humanist Arrogantly Making Enemies) Award.
>
> As adolescent fantasies are best left to adolescents, so childish
> needs to have one's own way are best left to children, who will
> hopefully outgrow them. Adults should, to borrow again from the

Hi Kaye, Thamks for posting this. I couldn t help but think of Klemp and some others while reading this. I would say that HK fits the descriptions of being

Message 3 of 3
, Apr 4, 2006

Hi Kaye,
Thamks for posting this. I couldn't help but think of Klemp and some
others while reading this. I would say that HK fits the descriptions
of being both self-righteous and a hypocrite!

Prometheus

eyesopen wrote:

Hi everyone!

I found this article interesting- maybe you will too.

Have fun,

Kaye

KAGIN'S COLUMN
ON SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS

self-righteous: confident of one's own righteousness, esp. when
smugly moralistic and intolerant of the opinions and behavior of
others. Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary

Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she
wouldn't. She said it was a mean practice and wasn't clean, and I
must try not to do it anymore....And she took snuff too; of course
that was all right, because she done it herself. Huckleberry Finn

The self-righteous are everywhere, trying to control our lives. With
the zeal of reformed nymphomaniacs peddling AmWay, they freely vend
their negative judgements on the behavior and opinions of others.
Unable or unwilling to control themselves and their unhappy lives of
frustration, insecurity, and despair, these petty dictators seek
solace in desperately attempting to control others. For they are
right. Those who disagree with their toxic tyranny are clearly and
obviously wrong, if not evil. And they do attract followers, persons
easily led, seeking certainty, and willing to praise, to flatter, and
to sing unto them, How great thou art. Self-righteous leaders reward
fidelity and elevate select obedient disciples, especially worshipful
ones who are confused but shamelessly self-righteous, to CULT
(Counseled Until Learned Truth) status.

The existence of such personalities is not new. Jesus is reported to
have said, "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's
eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" There
are similar references, for self-righteousness is justly and
frequently condemned in the bible, a work that, for all its many and
obvious faults, is not without certain merit. Indeed, we recommend
you read it. The book is much better than the movie.

Self-righteousness and hypocrisy may be joined, as in the widow's
views on tobacco reported by Huck. But they are quite different
concepts. Hypocrites, like the widow, do themselves that which they
so freely condemn in others. Most hypocrites are self-righteous, but
self-righteous persons are not necessarily hypocrites and may in fact
practice what they preach. A priest who rapes little boys, and
preaches against homosexuality and violence, is clearly both, while a
practicing virgin, who moralistically urges this unhappy fate on
others, is not. It's all in how you study it. Many have rejected
religion largely because it is home to lots of goodie-two-shoes type
persons of self-righteous or hypocritical persuasion. Sometimes, in
their attempt to live justly in an unjust world, the disillusioned
seek solace from religion in the perceived rationality of secular
humanism. And guess what?

This may come as a shock to some secular humanist readers, but the
self-righteous are also to be found among the ranks of the supposedly
rational, among those who look for meaning apart from the
supernatural, among those who decry the artificial goodness of the
godly. Bummer, ain't it? Thus, instead of holier-than-thou, we have
those who feel rationaler-than-thou, or skepticaler-than-thou, and
who demean, abjure, reject, and avoid those they feel don't quite
measure up to their standards. Such are no less self-righteous than
the widow.

Whether religious or secular, the self-righteous and the con-artist
are sisters under the skin. Both become outraged if they don't get
their way. The slightest reasoned refusal to consent to manipulation
or control is punished. The uncooperative mark may witness a
presumably well meaning, but terminally self-righteous, friend go
into an inexplicable rage, answering disobedience with irrational and
unpleasant emotions, until the victim seems, as best worded by
Shakespeare, "beyond reason hated." To further complicate matters,
the person deluded by self-righteousness cannot understand when
others are disinclined to share their hostility and fail to concede
the justness of their attitudes and actions. The world as one
conspires.

The self-righteous are troubled by democracy. Why debate or vote on
any matter of behavior or morality when truth is available by decree,
and when correct answers may be so readily had from those who know
the answers beyond any need for question or discussion? To challenge
such persons is, in their view, malum in se--in the vernacular,
reprehensible, wicked, and wrong in itself--denoting a defect of
character revealed in the very act of rebellion against ultimate
authority. Thereafter, every action or motive of the errant sinner
will be understood and punished as an indisputably vile thing--
another example of evil attacking good. The psychological mechanism
of projection, and the transparent narcissism of the self-righteous,
is beyond the scope of this digression. The analogies to theology are
scary. If afflicted leaders possess small power, they are merely
annoying, comical, or pathetic. If they hold real power over nations
or ideologies, the graveyards of history harbour their heritage.

The sad part is that they don't have to be like this. The self-
righteous prigs can get over it, or get therapy for it. They don't
have to expose themselves to the misery. Misery is optional, for
predator as well as prey, even if one thinks they have no free will.
Rational beings don't have to live with sustained rage, or with the
chronic paranoia of waiting for some other imaginary shoe to drop.
Those who live to control others could, using the power of reason
they mock, come to realize that compromise and resolution of
disagreements can be something more than capitulation or
appeasement, and that, in some things at least, they just might be--
as impossible as it seems--wrong. One is entitled to be smug,
arrogant, and self-righteous only if one has figured out how not to
die. The outcast may well be the better person. That's what the
bible story of the good Samaritan is all about.

If we can't avoid the self satisfied--the better option--we can laugh
at them. A healthy person loves to see the pompous taken down a peg
or two, and delights in mocking their phony goodness and proper ways.
This is why the common folk laugh when a stuffed shirt slips on a
banana skin. But what about self-righteous secular humanists who, in
hardening their hearts and softening their minds, do real harm to
those who actually favor free inquiry? Maybe we should create a
Secular Humanist Hall of Shame. Here could be enrolled and
acknowledged those whose actions have earned them the herein proposed
SHAME (Secular Humanist Arrogantly Making Enemies) Award.

As adolescent fantasies are best left to adolescents, so childish
needs to have one's own way are best left to children, who will
hopefully outgrow them. Adults should, to borrow again from the
bible, "put away childish things." It would be sad to die without
growing up.

For everything there is a season,
For every act there is a reason;
As a garden reflects its seeds,
Deeds of life tell that life's needs.